5 Best Road Trips

By Edible Editors | February 28, 2021

The lush paths meandering through RT Lodge and Maryville College in east Tennessee

RT Lodge, Maryville
In Maryville, just south of Knoxville, exists a true oasis in every sense of the word, RT Lodge. In 1931, a rich widow by the name of Susan Wiley Walker moved close to Maryville College and fell in love with the natural surroundings. She arranged with the university’s trust to build a home in the Maryville College Woods, which, upon her death, would be left to the institution. The 26-room home became known as Morningside, the 80-year-old Ms. Walker supervising both its construction and its landscaping. With her meticulous eye for natural beauty, she helped preserve much of the wooded area that surrounds the building today.

Eventually, Ruby Tuesday (a chain based in Maryville) arranged with the college to run the home and grounds as an event center, focusing on idyllic, outdoor weddings. The corporation built two lodges next to the home -- now the restaurant -- with porches, rocking chairs, and views of the lush grounds. All around, groomed trails wind through the woods and adjacent campus of Maryville College, allowing for plenty of wandering on bike or foot.

As for the farm-to-table food, it’s as good and comforting as the natural surroundings. The dishes are completely seasonal, from the stir-fried okra with peanuts to the mushroom risotto (hearty, with big chunks of foraged ’shrooms), to the tomato tart. Even the ramp salt, hot sauce, fermented butter, and breads are all homemade. In the melon salads (both watermelon and cantaloupe), they first compress the melons by vacuum packing them, making the chunks of fruit almost translucent while remaining extraordinarily flavorful. The fried chicken is not to be missed, nor is the berry pavlova for dessert. Best of all, after a couple glasses of wine, your comfortable room is just footsteps away, well within waddling distance.

Whether you're visiting your student at UTK (a mere 20 minutes from the lodge), or spending time in the neighboring Great Smoky Mountains, RT Lodge is a respite from the busy world. At only a 2 1/2-hour drive from Nashville, it gets one of our top votes for best dreamy staycation.

RT LODGE
1406 WILKINSON PIKE
MARYVILLE, TENNESSEE 37803
(865) 981-9800
rtlodge.com
@rtlodge.com

Photo 1: Tomato Tart from RT Lodge

Photo 2: Smoked Trout Dip at RT Lodge

Photo 3: Fried Chicken at RT Lodge

The Childress House, Murfreesboro
Nature not your thing, but you still want historic charm? Something that combines an upscale stay with a nearby town square and all that a college town has to offer? Then The Childress House in Murfreesboro is your place. Nestled on a leafy, residential street just a block from the historic courthouse, this 1820’s home offers old-fashioned charm and hospitality at its best. Sandi Baylis, the home’s owner (and an avid gardener), welcomes each guest with fresh flowers, local sweets, and a warm hug (or elbow bump these days). In any case, the warm welcome is the way B&Bs used to be before self-check-in became the norm.

The home has for rent three discrete apartments, each with its own bathroom, living room, and kitchen. The home’s porches and parlor are common spaces. An avid antique collector and world traveler, Sandi has adorned the house with period pieces, including her art from her childhood in Africa. But “woofy” alert, Sandi loves dogs, has three of her own, and invites her guests to bring their furry friends as well. The animals can romp and run in the fenced-in yard, lush with flowers and plants. Spring is a great time to visit and enjoy the warming weather on the porches.

Explore the town square which has bakeries, coffee shops, local boutiques, and a farmer’s market on Saturday mornings. Or walk the historic garden district enroute to the campus of MTSU.

Childress House
225 N Academy St
Murfreesboro, TN 37130
(615) 268-8063
childresstn.com
@childressbnb

Photo 1: Sandi Baylis in the backyard of The Childress House

Photo 2: Communal space at The Childress House

Photo 3: The bedroom in the Magnolia apartment at The Childress House. Photo by Don Wright Photography

Treehouse Mountain Retreat, Copperhill
Down some remote, curving, backcountry roads -- where Tennessee, Georgia, and North Carolina intersect, a 3 1/2 hours’ drive from Nashville -- Treehouse Mountain Retreat sways in the woods like a small development of upscale eagles’ nests. With only four treehouses spread out over thirty acres of land, this unique retreat provides plenty of privacy. Further, located just a stone’s throw from the Ocoee River and the Cherokee National Forest, there is an abundance of outdoor activities from which to choose: white water rafting, hiking, tubing, zip lining, kayaking, and horseback riding.

We arrived a bit road weary at dusk on a Friday evening in February, but the sight of “La Paz,” our fairytale treehouse nestled up in the pines and accessed via a swinging bridge, had us bounding up the trail within seconds. But this is not exactly roughing it. The treehouses have all the amenities: running water, a fridge, comfy couches, beds, toilets, and WiFi.

The Treehouse Retreat is the brainchild of Tom and Elke Detko. The couple met in 1989 in Costa Rica where they lived on the beach in a hammock while operating their eco-resort called Finca Pura -- Pure Farm -- with 10 primitive, palm-roofed huts that Tom had designed. Upon return to the US, the pair bought property in the Blue Ridge Mountains and started their treehouse “village” in 2018 with the goal of bringing people together to enjoy nature and leave refreshed.

After a robust fire and drinks, we headed to the comfy beds and fell asleep to the sway of the trees in the wind. The next day, we recommend heading to nearby Murphy, NC where antique and junk stores abound. Enjoy a “flight” at a local brewery with wood-fired pizza and check out some horseback riding through the woods. You’ll be thirsty again, so stop by a couple breweries in nearby Copperhill, TN and McCaysville, GA before retreating to your treehouse for dinner around the fire.

Treehouse Mountain Retreat
871 Burgertown Rd.
Copperhill, TN 37317
(404) 429-6241
treehousestennessee.com
@treehousemountainretreat

Photo 1: The path to La Paz treehouse

Photo 2: Elke, Layla, and Tom Detko of Treehouse Mountain Retreat

Photo 3: bed at Treehouse Mountain Retreat

Evins Mill, Smithville
The first thing you need to know about Evins Mill is that it has its own private waterfall; how’s that for a splash! At 90-feet tall, Carmac Falls is bigger than Foster Falls. Hike down to the bottom, and chances are you’ll have its picturesque swimming hole all to yourself.

The fact that you can doze off to sleep in the creekside cabins to the sound of the burbling stream is also not inconsequential. This intimate, wooded resort is perfect in almost every way. Tucked into a hilly and forested forty acres, the property dates back to 1939. There are trails around the grounds leading to an old mill to explore, as well as to an overlook of the falls. Done with walking? Then simply set up an important meeting with the rocking chairs on the porch.

Dinner and breakfast, included with the room, are served in a small dining room with a large deck overlooking the grounds. The food is made from scratch and locally sourced from area farms. Also included is a substantial packed lunch -- a meal ready to take on a hike, or to eat in the car on the way home.

Evins Mill
1535 Evins Mill Rd.
Smithville, TN 37166
(615) 269-3740
evinsmill.com
@evinsmill

Photo 1: Carmac Falls at Evins Mill

Photo 2: Evins Mill

Hachland Hill, Joelton
Hachland (pronounced Ha-land) Hill, an idyllic, 80-acre retreat in Joelton, is possibly the best-kept secret in middle Tennessee. It was owned and operated by Phila Rawlings Hach, the grande dame of Southern cooking and the visionary who pioneered the first cooking show on WSMV-TV.

Minutes from downtown, Hachland Hill today hosts weddings, retreats, and private stays, and is run by Phila’s grandson, Carter, a gifted chef who inherited his grandmother’s love of hospitality and talent for cooking. Carter now operates the inn and offers dinner and breakfast to overnight guests as well as to the public who reserve in advance. His farm-to-table, locally sourced food is thoughtfully prepared with a bit of whimsy. On our visit, we had a sumptuous mushroom pot pie called the Chicken “Not” Pie. This tasty dish was followed by the Tongue in Cheek -- smoked pork cheeks with house pepper jelly and roasted garlic aioli. We capped off our meal with the Classy, Bougie, Pastry, a blackberry cobbler crème pâtissière filled brioche. Oh, my!

Below the Main Inn and down a long driveway is the Spring Creek Inn, a three-story log cabin that sleeps 18. This rustic cottage contains antique beds and overlooks a creek and the old tobacco barn. The simple rooms are outfitted with quilts and have porches perfect for coffee or cocktails. Historic charm is all around like Phila’s marble biscuit table (originally a 19^th century table from candy maker Charlie Mitchell) and a well-worn biscuit roller from the 1920s.

Hachland Hill
5396 Rawlings Rd.
Joelton, TN 37080
(615) 876-1500
hachlandhill.com
@hachlandhill